The Atrocities of the Quraish.
“And among men is he who says: We believe in God, but when, he
is presented in the way of God, he thinks of the persecution of men as the chastisement of God”
(Quran 29:10)
Saiyidina Arqam RA, one of the early converts gave his house
called the “Abode of Islam” or Darul Islam which was situated at the foot of
Safa’s hill and is the center of the mission. This house is especially famous in
Islam and is known to this day as the Abode of Islam. In it, Rasulullahﷺ preached for over three years and many people embraced Islam there.
Thirdly, Makkah was the greatest temple location in Arabia where the offerings to idols therein were a source of immense wealth. They feared lest those with the influence and power it bought would be lost. Fourthly, the chiefs of the Quraish were apprehensive that the new religion would put an end to their prestige and a stop to their luxuries and generally make impossible their easy and dissipated lives.
So Rasulullahﷺ was subjected to every sort of torture and atrocities, Thorns were strewn in his path, stones were thrown at his house, and dirt and rubbish at his body. He was laughed at and hooted, and once when he was at prayer, ‘Uqba bin Abd Mu’it threw his sheet around his neck and pulled it with such a force that the body of Rasulullahﷺ fell on his face. The story of these outrages is a long and sad one. The people of Quraish had decided to extinguish this new religion from the face of the earth, and to stop its preachers from carrying on their work.
Once the opposition started it gradually developed, and
hatred of the people became fierce. It was only because of the ancient and
peculiar custom of the Arabs that if a man is murdered it would lead to war
between the clans of the murdered and murderer, that they stopped from killing
holy Rasulullahﷺ outright, and also perhaps because they were already tired of
war, but all this did not stop them from doing all they could to torture the
holy Rasulullah ﷺ and his followers.
When the Quraish discovered that all they did was of no avail,
they sent a deputation to Abu Talib, the chief of the tribe which also the
uncle of Holy Rasulullahﷺ to beg him to stop holy from preaching.
Abu Talib sent them out with pacifying words, but they returned again after
some time to put their case before him with greater force.
The second deputation decided on Abu Talib, and he sent for Rasulullahﷺ to refrain him from preaching, pointing out that he could not fight the whole
tribe single-handedly. At this time on account of the persistent persecution,
the followers of Islam were few and weak, yet holy Rasulullahﷺ spoke to his
uncle in these words, “I would not care even if I had to lay down my life for
God (Allah), but if you are afraid of your own weakness then leave me alone; my
God is enough to help me, Even if these people were to give me the moon in one
hand and the sun in the other, it would not stop me from doing my duty”. This
answer impressed and moved Abu Talib so much that, marveled at the courage,
perseverance, and patience of Rasulullahﷺ. Abu Talib told him, to go and do
his duty and promised that he, Abu Talib, would help him as much as he was
able.
When the Quraish found that this also had failed, they sent
Utbah, an orator to Rasulullahﷺ who said: “O son of my brother, thou art
distinguished by the qualities and the descent. Now thou hast sown division
among our people and cast dissension in our families, thou denounce our gods
and goddesses, thou dost tax our ancestors with impiety. We have a proposition
to make to thee, think well it will not suit thee to accept it.”
“Speak O Utbah,” said Rasulullah ﷺt. “I will listen, O son of my
brother.” Commenced Utbah, “ If thou wishes to acquire riches by this affair,
we will collect a fortune larger than is possessed by any of us if thou
desires honor and dignity, we shall make thee our chief, and shall not do a thing without thee, if thou desires dominion, we shall make thee our king, and
if the spirit which possesses thee cannot be overpowered, we will bring the
doctors and give them riches till they cure thee.” And when he had done;
“Has thou finished, O father of Walid?” asked Rasulullahﷺ. “Yes”
replied Utbah. “Then listen to me,” Rasulullahﷺ said. “In the name of the most
Merciful Allah,” commenced Rasulullahﷺ, “this is a revelation from the most
Merciful; a book the verses whereof are distinctly explained, an Arabic Quran,
for the instruction of people who understand, bearing good tidings and
denouncing threats, but the greater part of them turn aside and hearken not
thereto.
And there say, ‘Our hearts are veiled from the doctrine to which
thou invite us, and there is a deafness in our ears and a curtain between us and
thee; wherefore act thou as thou shall think fit, for we shall act according to
our sentiments. Say, Verily I am only a man like you. It is revealed unto me
that your God is one God: wherefore direct your way straight unto Him, and ask
pardon of him for what is past.
“And woe is to idolaters, who
give not the appointed alms, and believe not in the life to come. But as to
those who believe and work righteousness, they shall receive an everlasting reward”
(The Quran
41:1 – 8)
When Rasulullahﷺ finished this recitation, he said to Utbah,
“Thou have heard, now take the course which seemeth best to thee”
Utbah returned and told the Quraishi that it would be best to
leave him to his devices, pointing out that it would be an occasion of pride if Rasulullahﷺ was to succeed in his mission, “for,” he said, “he belongs to our
tribe, and if he fails we attain our object.” But they refused to listen to his
advice.
When they found that every attempt of theirs had failed they
decided that each tribe should persecute in every way the Muslim of its clan,
and hence starts a tale that is too painful to be told in full. Although
‘Usman was a grown-up and quite an independent person because he was a follower
of Islam, his uncle tortured him by tying him with ropes and beating him.
‘Abdullah was unmercifully beaten on the premises of the Kaabah itself. Other
followers were beaten and tortured whenever possible.
Even more cruel and ghastly were tortures meted out to the poor
slaves who were the followers of Rasulullahﷺ. Bilal, the slave of Umayya
bin Khalaf was forced to lie down on the hot sands of the desert on his back
with his face to the scorching sun and a heavy stone on top of his back. Sayidina Bilal Ibn Rabbah ra was also bound and dragged through the streets of Makkah. “You remain
in the scorching sun till you are dead or you abjure Islam,” his master would
say. As Bilal lay, half-stifled under the heavy weight of the stone, he would
only say, “Ahad..Ahad..Ahad..(One God..One God..One God). This lasted for days
until he was ransomed by Abu Bakr and set free.
Thus comparatively these most heinous, obnoxious, and ultimately
cruelty acts with that of the courage
and patience of Rasulullahﷺ and his followers, and you will realize the
powerful force that was inflicted upon the Ummah of Islam. These gave them the strength,
sacrifice, and purity of Jihad in their heart. The early Ummah in Islam with embedded truth
in faith culminates in the courage to fight all the forces of evils on earth.
These atrocities never caused one Muslim so much as even to
waiver.
“His life and his companions are the noblest records of a work
nobly and faithfully performed. Rasulullahﷺ infused vitality into a dormant people; he consolidated a congeries of
warring tribes into a nation inspired into action with the hope of everlasting
life; Rasulullahﷺ concentrated into a focus all the fragmentation and
broken lights which had ever fallen on the heart of man.”
As the truth prevails forever until eternity, the preaching,
diplomacy, and character of the Holy Rasulullahﷺimbibed that religiousness
that was not found in the early followers of the heavenly religion. Prophet
Isa Alaihisallam (Jesus) was led to the cross, and his followers fled and left him
to die all alone (though no truth of this with regards to Prophet Isa AS
mentioned in Al Quran – Islam). Thus, on
the contrary, Rasulullahﷺ his companion will gather around him whenever he was
threatened and willingly defend their lives for him.
